In his "Producer's Note" in the beautiful book that is part of the box, Lemieux, who attended the first 10 shows on the tour, states, "To my ears this was the last tour that was consistently great, where every show is excellent, not a dud in the bunch." And Grateful Dead historian Dennis McNally's comprehensive and informative insider's essay in the box is titled "The Last Great Dead Tour." These guys know what they're talking about.

Basically, the band had been on an upward trajectory since Garcia's return to the road in the spring of '87, following his near-death the previous summer. Of course, 1987 was a trip in itself, what with the unexpected mega-success of In the Dark and their first hit single, "Touch of Grey." But the momentum just kept building with each subsequent tour, as Garcia got back up to full speed (and then some!) and the group as a whole was as unified as they had ever been since Brent joined the band in the spring of '79. New original tunes were popping up and the old favorites were imbued with a freshness and spirit that was so uplifting and inspiring. The band was having fun again, and it was downright infectious.

The group's fall 1989 shows-as documented two years ago on the Formerly the Warlocks box (two shows from Hampton, VA, 10/8-9/89) and on the 2001 release Nightfall of Diamonds (a single night in NJ, 10/16/89)- kicked the energy level up another couple of notches, as the band reintroduced such loved classics as "Help on the Way" > "Slipknot!," "Attics of My Life," "Death Don't Have No Mercy" and "Dark Star."

And when the band hit the road in mid-March 1990, they had a bunch of other cool tunes to lay on their unsuspecting crowds, including the return of "Loose Lucy" (last played in 1974; it's not on this box), Brent's "Easy to Love You" (missing since 1980), a rollicking cover of the Rolling Stones' "The Last Time," The Band's "The Weight" (with all four singers taking a verse each) and a lyrically retooled "Black-Throated Wind" (absent since 1974), which elicited huge cheers every time it was played.

Over these six shows, most of the cornerstones of the Dead's repertoire from the era appear-splendid versions of "Scarlet Begonias" > "Fire on the Mountain," "China Cat Sunflower" > "I Know You Rider," "Playing in the Band," "Uncle John's Band," "Eyes of the World," "Estimated Prophet," "Truckin'," "Sugar Magnolia," "The Other One," "Terrapin," "Stella Blue," "Feel Like a Stranger," "Bird Song," "Let It Grow," "China Doll," "Box of Rain," "Morning Dew"; you name it. From the fall '89 breakouts come "Help-Slip-Frank," "Attics of My Life" and "Death Don't Have No Mercy." Among the still newish tunes are "Picasso Moon," "Blow Away," "Foolish Heart," "Just a Little Light," "Victim or the Crime," "Standing on the Moon," "We Can Run" and a couple that would get their final plays from the Grateful Dead on this tour-"Built to Last" and "Believe It or Not." There are stirring renditions of "Dear Mr. Fantasy" and "Black Muddy River," rockin' takes on "Gimme Some Lovin'" and "Iko Iko" and the only version of the full "Hey Jude" the band attempted in the modern era. And the "Rhythm Devils" and "Space" jams at the heart of each second set are as noisy-beautiful-scary-funny-intense-mysterious-wild as you'd expect/hope for.

Of course, we understand that some of you may have other favorite shows from this tour you wish were included on this box. Really, you can't go wrong with any of them. But at 18 discs, this is still the second largest Grateful Dead box (after Europe '72: The Complete Recordings) that's been released, and the non-inclusion of any other shows from the tour definitely does not preclude their future release! But this seemed like a more manageable way to go, while still giving a sense of the tour's amazing depth and breadth.

Besides the discs themselves, Grateful Dead: Spring 1990 has much to offer, including: a gorgeous 60-page hardcover book containing copious color photos by Jim Anderson and Michael Laurentus, unique artwork by Brooklyn-based fine artist Wes Lang, fascinating business letters and communications related to the tour, a detailed historical essay by Dennis McNally, a Producer's Note by David Lemieux and individual show descriptions by Blair Jackson; a reproduction of the Dead's 1990 tour program (printed and sold later in '90, for the fall and Europe '90 tours); tickets and backstage passes of all six shows; a band publicity photo from 1990 by Ken Friedman; Dennis McNally's tour laminate; and reproductions of the colored 8x10 sheets GDTS sent out with hotel, food and other information for each city on the tour.

With recordings made by longtime Grateful Dead recordist and producer John Cutler, mastered by Jeffrey Norman in HDCD, you just know it's gonna sound great-and it does!

So, that's the skinny this time 'round. This box is limited to just 9,000 numbered copies - please note, this is the only time these shows will ever be officially available on CD. There will not be an All Music Edition and single shows will not be available physically. Due to ship out August 31st, we anticipate that this extraordinary set will sell-out, so order your copy today!

If you're looking for more of a bite-sized taste of the '90s, Spring 1990: So Glad You Made It, a 2-CD set featuring a handful of favorites, will be in stores on September 18th.

Disc 1
1. Feel Like A Stranger [8:12]
2. West L. A. Fadeaway [7:41]
3. Easy To Love You [6:14]
4. Beat It On Down The Line [3:34]
5. It Must Have Been The Roses [6:29]
6. The Last Time [5:40]
7. Picasso Moon [7:07]
8. Don't Ease Me In [3:30]

Well it took 28 days , but it's here.
I had to pay £28.00 in VAT & other charges , oh well some you win some you loose!
I've checked my discs are all correct , & bingo I've been lucky.
This box & contents look fabulous , it's been constructed with a great deal of thought & attention . It's really quite something , lovely.

I've not had chance to hear a note yet , but am looking forward to ploughing through.

I hope those who are still waiting get theirs too , this so called organisation , needs to learn a lot from this shockingly poor shipping system (lack of) that they operate . My previous order for Daves picks took a mind numbing 53 days to arrive!! Things have to get better , the whiff of the backlash from these posts can be smelt from the UK & it ain't nice. My emails have however all been answered , though no proper solutions or answers were in their contents.

I hope things are better next time around.

Good luck to all you other 'heads , hope it all works out for you all.....

I just received the Garcia/Saunders set of the complete live Keystone recordings from 1973. For those complaining about Jerry's sound/commitment in 1990-go get this box. About 7 unreleased tracks added to the previously released material and all music well remastered. Some goodies in the box also for us collectors. don't get this wrong-I'm liking the 1990 set just fine but 1973 was amazing and the Merl/Jerry symbiosis is very unique and was a big formative experience for Jerry(and Merl also apparently from David Gan's excellent notes). The box is available at the usual sources-surprised NO MENTION OF IT HERE. Oh well it isn't a Rhino product-it is Concord-home of many great jazz issues/reissues. Check it out if you haven't discovered it yet.

I wish @wharfrattx and @whupumpkin the best. I hope you to actually receive your order, and wharfrattx to get Dave to read his letter.

However I think the chances are slim to none.

I had my 5th phone call with dead.net customer disservice today to find out where my refund is, more than a week after they told me Spring 90 was never going to be in stock, and I would get a refund. Today's clueless CSR said my account was notated with "sending replacement" - A week ago I was told definitively that there were no more, yet my order is still active?

Again, and I hate to vent dirty laundry and beat a dead horse (and whatever other cliches apply) but this has gotten beyond ridiculous.

DEAD.NET/RHINO customer service has moved into the category of one of worst customer service experiences I've ever had. I've been ripped off on the internet by people that were more reliable than DEAD.NET/RHINO.

This has to stop - I will never buy another recording from this joke of a company. Sorry guys, this isn't the Grateful Dead.

Still waitin', I'm STILL waitin'
I ordered the box the day after it was announced,Customer care sent me a mail on Sept 2 telling me that the box had left the building,and here I am,still no dice.
Received a mal a week or so ago asking me how did I like my boxset. I replied,what boxset?,they got back to me apologizing and offering a full refund since they didn't have a spare box set to send...
But WAIT! The next day,new mail telling me that,no,they did not intend to offer me a full refund but only a 10% rebate,since after all people were sill receiving their boxes and they were investigating on the matter.
It is sept 27th. True,I live in Europe,and it takes a while,but 25 frigging day?
What a debacle this has been..I've purchased many many items in the past,from dead.net and never had a problem,but this is just terrible.
It's like,they don't WANT our money...
The music is available,in excellent quality around. We buy what we buy because we like to have the artifact,and maybe,at least for me,because it seems the right thing to do,given the amount of music shared freely elesewhere. You nderstand that,right?
Please,get your act together,for the love of the music...
Peace out,
Dario
(I'm sure if/when I'll finally receive the box I'll be so awe-struck that everything will be forgotten,and I'll keep buying,like a moth ever closing in to the light...)

Still waitin', I'm STILL waitin'
I ordered the box the day after it was announced,Customer care sent me a mail on Sept 2 telling me that the box had left the building,and here I am,still no dice.
Received a mal a week or so ago asking me how did I like my boxset. I replied,what boxset?,they got back to me apologizing and offering a full refund since they didn't have a spare box set to send...
But WAIT! The next day,new mail telling me that,no,they did not intend to offer me a full refund but only a 10% rebate,since after all people were sill receiving their boxes and they were investigating on the matter.
It is sept 27th. True,I live in Europe,and it takes a while,but 25 frigging day?
What a debacle this has been..I've purchased many many items in the past,from dead.net and never had a problem,but this is just terrible.
It's like,they don't WANT our money...
The music is available,in excellent quality around. We buy what we buy because we like to have the artifact,and maybe,at least for me,because it seems the right thing to do,given the amount of music shared freely elesewhere. You nderstand that,right?
Please,get your act together,for the love of the music...
Peace out,
Dario
(I'm sure if/when I'll finally receive the box I'll be so awe-struck that everything will be forgotten,and I'll keep buying,like a moth ever closing in to the light...)

I agree - Jerry was beginning to pull back at this point, which is why I much prefer Summer '89 to Spring '90. There's a Not Fade Away on youtube (I believe from 7/17/89) that fully captures the mood of that magical season. JG and the others were TRULY on fire - as animated and energetic as during any of their last 10 years.

The announcement for the fourth and final installment (this year) of Dave's Picks is well behind schedule based on the trend for the previous three. I have no doubts that this is due to the quality control issues. How it embarassing it must be to have the fourth installment ready for release when a percentage of purchasers haven't even received the third installment yet (if ever)!

What follows below is a letter I sent to the vault. I was inspired to write after reading the comments on this board and the trouble I had with my Europe '72 purchase.

Dear Dave,
Years ago i spoke with Dick Latvala who told me that things were taking an uneasy turn for the worse, but I bet he NEVER suspected what would eventually become of the Dead organization. I've been mail-ordering tickets and merchandise since the 80's, always a wonderful experience. I've got EVERYTHING EVER released except for "greatest hits" compilations and the Spring '90 box. (more on that below) I'm a subscriber of YOUR series, and I must say, I'm loving it, especially Volume 3! Damn, Keith sure could tickle the ivories when he wanted to! I completely respect and almost always agree with your opinions on the music, and I LOVE the videos - keep 'em comin! I think you're serving the memory of Dick pretty well. Now, here's my issue. You're going to lose me as a customer. Actually, you already have. I didn't order the Spring '90 set and as much as I love 'em, I won't be ordering next year's subscription to your series. I WANT TO! But I can't. The customer service and product quality has gotten so bad, I can't gamble with my money anymore. I would be writing them this message (actually I have, they never respond) but I thought since you seem to be a sincere, decent person who actually cares about the music, much like myself, I thought I'd take a chance and write you. I've had my Europe '72 set for a year and a week. Still haven't received my replacement discs. I call now and then, drop customer service an email here and there, but nothing. No one cares. They have my money. Why should they respond? This is where YOU come in, Dave. See, When I spoke to Dick 15 years ago, (I had burned him some CDs and he called to thank me.) he lamented the fact that big, bad "corporate" folks were trying to muscle in on the sacred organization he had grown to know and love. It was coming, he knew it. He assured me, however, that if/when that day came, there would still be people who made sure that the fans were treated right and fair, and that the music would be respected. And whether he knew it at the time or not, it was people like YOU he was refering to. YOU are now carrying that torch! Which is why I'm writing. People are angry and hurt. They feel ripped off. Have you read the message boards for Spring '90? What's wrong with Rhino? YOU know there's a problem yet you champion them in your videos and defend and promote products like Spring '90 when you know that many people will be ripped off and cheated out of their money! YOU are a good person! PLEASE don't let the powers that be get away with this. It's a disgrace the way customers are being treated by Rhino and in turn, the Dead organization. Other music mail order companies don't do this! I order from Zappa, Phish, Allmans, String Cheese, NEVER a problem, or if there is one, I'm confident they'll provide service. I'VE LOST CONFIDENCE IN THE DEAD ORGANIZATION. Ask yourself...What would Dick have said about the disgraceful way fans of this music are being treated now? What would Jerry have said? Other than my conversation with Dick, I don't know him or Jerry, but I do know that they would have been appalled. I believe you probably are too. PLEASE DO SOMETHING!!! MAKE A PUBLIC STATEMENT THROUGH ONE OF YOUR VIDEOS OR SOME OTHER WAY, BUT MAKE PEOPLE AWARE THAT THIS TRAVESTY WILL END!!!! IT HAS TO!! I want to resubscribe to Dave's Picks, but I won't do it now, not with things like they are. PLEASE - MAKE DICK PROUD!!! Do the right thing Dave!!!!!!
Sincerely,
John Coley
P.S. - Even though this would have been the perfect opportunity to release 8-27-72 audio & video (40th Anniversary), thank you for not doing it now, while it would have been subjected to poor quality control and customer service. Save it for when things get better. And they will - I HAVE FAITH IN YOU!!!

What follows below is a letter I sent to the vault. I was inspired to write after reading the comments on this board and the trouble I had with my Europe '72 purchase.

Dear Dave,
Years ago i spoke with Dick Latvala who told me that things were taking an uneasy turn for the worse, but I bet he NEVER suspected what would eventually become of the Dead organization. I've been mail-ordering tickets and merchandise since the 80's, always a wonderful experience. I've got EVERYTHING EVER released except for "greatest hits" compilations and the Spring '90 box. (more on that below) I'm a subscriber of YOUR series, and I must say, I'm loving it, especially Volume 3! Damn, Keith sure could tickle the ivories when he wanted to! I completely respect and almost always agree with your opinions on the music, and I LOVE the videos - keep 'em comin! I think you're serving the memory of Dick pretty well. Now, here's my issue. You're going to lose me as a customer. Actually, you already have. I didn't order the Spring '90 set and as much as I love 'em, I won't be ordering next year's subscription to your series. I WANT TO! But I can't. The customer service and product quality has gotten so bad, I can't gamble with my money anymore. I would be writing them this message (actually I have, they never respond) but I thought since you seem to be a sincere, decent person who actually cares about the music, much like myself, I thought I'd take a chance and write you. I've had my Europe '72 set for a year and a week. Still haven't received my replacement discs. I call now and then, drop customer service an email here and there, but nothing. No one cares. They have my money. Why should they respond? This is where YOU come in, Dave. See, When I spoke to Dick 15 years ago, (I had burned him some CDs and he called to thank me.) he lamented the fact that big, bad "corporate" folks were trying to muscle in on the sacred organization he had grown to know and love. It was coming, he knew it. He assured me, however, that if/when that day came, there would still be people who made sure that the fans were treated right and fair, and that the music would be respected. And whether he knew it at the time or not, it was people like YOU he was refering to. YOU are now carrying that torch! Which is why I'm writing. People are angry and hurt. They feel ripped off. Have you read the message boards for Spring '90? What's wrong with Rhino? YOU know there's a problem yet you champion them in your videos and defend and promote products like Spring '90 when you know that many people will be ripped off and cheated out of their money! YOU are a good person! PLEASE don't let the powers that be get away with this. It's a disgrace the way customers are being treated by Rhino and in turn, the Dead organization. Other music mail order companies don't do this! I order from Zappa, Phish, Allmans, String Cheese, NEVER a problem, or if there is one, I'm confident they'll provide service. I'VE LOST CONFIDENCE IN THE DEAD ORGANIZATION. Ask yourself...What would Dick have said about the disgraceful way fans of this music are being treated now? What would Jerry have said? Other than my conversation with Dick, I don't know him or Jerry, but I do know that they would have been appalled. I believe you probably are too. PLEASE DO SOMETHING!!! MAKE A PUBLIC STATEMENT THROUGH ONE OF YOUR VIDEOS OR SOME OTHER WAY, BUT MAKE PEOPLE AWARE THAT THIS TRAVESTY WILL END!!!! IT HAS TO!! I want to resubscribe to Dave's Picks, but I won't do it now, not with things like they are. PLEASE - MAKE DICK PROUD!!! Do the right thing Dave!!!!!!
Sincerely,
John Coley
P.S. - Even though this would have been the perfect opportunity to release 8-27-72 audio & video (40th Anniversary), thank you for not doing it now, while it would have been subjected to poor quality control and customer service. Save it for when things get better. And they will - I HAVE FAITH IN YOU!!!

...by far of this band. I taped the 3/30/90 show off the radio myself and my brother taped 3/26/90 and so these are considerable upgrades of 2 of my favorite tapes. I really only wish they could have included all of the shows - was at 3/28/90 and 3/29/90 is a must also, as are the other Hartford and the other Atlanta shows.

In terms of the mix, I think it is true to the mix that was happening onstage. Jerry sounds a bit muted during Picasso Moon at times, for example, but he was using heavy distortion and some kind of compressor and that's how he sounded in the mix when you were there. Doing it after the fact is a bit artificial, although Cutler was in the truck mixing down the 16 feeds as they came in and optimizing them the same way he would now.And everyone's preferences are different regarding a mix - some like a matrix, some like auds, some like more sterile sounding sbds - there's no pleasing everyone so I think they did a great job.

Finally just some comments on the period - by convention, all second sets after about 1979 were listed with Drums and Space in them. But if you listen to 3/22/90 at Copps, for example, the last several minutes of Truckin is a clear Other One jam, then into a similarly themed drums, a space segment that again is clearly an Other One jam, and then 7 minutes of the Other One. So even though the setlist reads Truckin>D>S>OtherOne and the Other One is under 7 minutes, in 1972 this whole track would have been listed as Truckin>The Other One with The Other One clocking in near 30 minutes. Anothe thing that is real interesting is the profound difference between the Eyes in Hartford - a magnificent uptempo version to be sure that takes its roots from many of the late 80's versions - and the Eyes that was played just a few days later in Nassau, which was significantly slowed down and frankly ahd a much sweeter groove that the two drummers really jumped all over. And maybe Jerry consciously slowed it down because of the presence of Branford Marsalis, but every version I've heard after that had that same tempo and those booming, low end drums that were so sweet.

So sorry some of you have had trouble with shipping but would love to engage in a discussion about the music.

I called customer service about 4 weeks ago regarding my cracked disc dilemma. They said it would take a while. No problem. Called again last night, and they stated that they are still waiting for a 3-16-90 disc 3 replacement, so it will still be some time. No worries, I just hope it gets here soon......

Still diggin' the It's All Over Now from 3/19/90, just outstanding keyboardsmanship by the veteren (10years,10months,26days) Mydland.

I hear some of what the audiophiles with their logic plugins analysing each tracks peaks and valleys are talkin' about, there are points where Jer just fades out of the mix but I think it's more of a laying back by Jer to let the band swing and besides he's 10million sheets to the wind at this period of his life so the fatigue is very apparent. But the rest of the band is ON FIRE ! ! ! No wonder the post98 bands have been swingin like it's 1967 all over, I want some official release of the new Further songs especially the triple threat that ends with Big Bad Blues, Yeah Bobby !!

I wish I could've afforded to buy a couple more of it!I Granted, there are a couple of spots where the mix could be a little better but overall, I'm one VERY happy camper! Kudos, and as far as favorite shows, you've got to be kidding, each show smokes!

Just got back from 10 days holiday to find an invoice from ParcelForce for UKP32.01 (18.51 import VAT + 13.50 handling charge) or USD51.75. Paid online this morning and scheduled for delivery tomorrow. Invoice contained a tracking number which revails that the box arrived in the UK from Germany on 14th September and spent around 5 days in UK customs before arriving here in Aberdeen on 20th September.

Once it arrives, you forget the trepidation, the suspense and the anger. The box is beautifully produced. If I only had the cd trays with cd's and the white book, I would still be satisfied, but the extras are nice, even if you never look at them again. I guess that's what makes one a collector.

If the lettering on the cd's is anaything to go by, I received all the right cd's, but I guess I have to test them to be sure.

Sound is absolutely fine with me, based on the first half of the first cd.In a way it may even sound more like the 70's than like WaN; a nice mix. With QJA I notice that Bobby sounds really upfront (nice) and the drums sound a little synthetic (less nice, but not really grating to the ears).

In the end I may buy Formerly the Warlocks and Terrapin Limited as well; it's still not my favorite period, but it's a testament to their longevity, and really a kind of last hurrah I think.

This time I had to pay another $ 40 to get it (VAT + import taxes), a case of tough luck, as simonrob indicated: E72 I got for "free"...

Which bring me back to my initial comment: it's easy to forget all the frustration if, in the end (and not dramatically late following the initial September 1 release date) you receive what you ordered and what you paid for. However, considering the loyal fan base, the not extremely low prices and the experience many Dead heads have when ordering from other web sites, there is a lot of room for improvement. I sincerely hope that tptb read through the somewhat offensive language used sometimes and get to the bottom of this.

The music selected is generally very good (but that's not your achievement), mastering is fine as well, packaging is great (you listen to customers in this respect).

BUT: quality control in packaging (the right cd's, not damaged) and logistics (speedy delivery) leaves a lot to be desired. (BTW, powerful build up / ending of Loser!, May be in my top 5).

I have just received an email, 25 September, asking me to be patient re the arrival of S90. However, I emailed on 19 September to say that it had arrived and received a reply on 20 September in confirmation.
It would seem that there is a lack of order and organisation.
I have replied, pasting the pertinent thread.
Hey ho!

Roland, good to hear that your copy has also arrived. I am surprised to hear that you have to pay invoerrecht/BTW. I also had to pick my copy up from the post office and all I had to give them was my autograph. I guess I got lucky this time and you didn't but I don't pretend to know why it worked out this way.

The First night (of the Box Set) is cool the Let the Good Times Roll really does, and listen to that opening on Queen Jane, yeah, that's what we're talkin' 'bout. And the Blow Away, just does, too. On the next disc the Scarlet opener rips as does the Estimated, Ship of Fools?, nicely done but kind of a show stopper, then the Women are Smarter jams along well enough, but the ending is abrupt and then the Jam is just a redo of the ending with Brent goin' bananas on the keys, The Drums and Space are truly the stars of this box. Each nights Duets are extended and engaging, the Other oNe is just filler after the fireworks But the Stella Blue is magnificent !!!, One of the highlights of the night. then the Sugar Magnolia rocks but never really attains the heights it is capable of producing. The Last Time is always great. Jagger and Richards first tune, what a team., Like to see some cross pollination with Furthur and The Stones on the up comin' world tour. But then the Next Night has it's moments too, the Bucket is just kickin' around and The Bertha moves but only so, the We Can Run is sweet with the hamony backup vocals but the kicker on the first disc is the It's All Over Now, with Brent channeling bluesy organ and scat-ing to set the beat, Brent really was takin' it up a notch or eight on these last tours.

Yea, I actually got it!
Whew, do they need to fire the new fulfillment company or what?
Biggest mess I've ever seen.
Not just the mess that happened, but the totally clueless and unhelpful customer service.

I was just getting ready to post about the music when I saw the last post. So far I really like Copps, Hartford and Nausau. That Nausau is REALLY AMAZING. I didn't get into Knick except for Morning Dew and Loser and the bonus material is top notch. Most of sound quality is good or better except a few songs are overly boomy-like the Victim or Crime at Knick. I am happy to have this release.

Sitting on the couch with my wife, instead of watching TV we've been absorbing this set. It is really cool to read the nicely done white book, the ultimate liner notes. I understand about the shipping issues and the bad disks, but bitching about the sound quality? I played
Without a Net and then the box set, they sound very similar. I can hear Jerry well.

Would anyone care to discuss the music, or just bitch like a bunch of grumpy old men?

My favs here are Nassau, Knickerb, and Omni in that order. The Beleive it or Not on Copps is awsome, had me on archive looking for other versions. Somehow I missed that song through the years.

Fav pic? The one of Brent at the end of the black(?) book with his fist in the air.

The box is well done, fits perfectly beside my LP's, love that it actualy has plastic CD trays not idiotic cardboard sleeves.

As far as nitpicking, no one forced you to buy it, thay gave audio samples, and it sounds quality wise better than many of my SBD disks from the '70s or the '80s and '90s.

Steve and Organgrinder - sorry you had to pay customs charges. I caught the Royal Mail delivery van just as as I was leaving for work. The driver saw my stunned face when I realised there wasn't a charge. He reckons it was because no-one had marked the value anywhere on the box. Hope you enjoy the music though!

@RROT - yes people piss and moan, and yes there are errors in large scale distribution projects. What aggravates the situation is the general cluelessness of the dead.net customer service.

Dead.net relies on the tried and true model of Customer Service outsourcing. The highest level of customer service person is still 1000 miles and 10 pay grades away from anyone with real decision making power at Rhino, and probably works for another company altogether. That leaves no accountability by the "decision makers" for things like: problems with vendors, processes, or customer service.

It's a perfect situation for Rhino, and one that comes up incredibly short for a customer, like many of us here, who has problems with their order.

If dead.net had Amazon or Zappos levels of customer service, you would be reading a fraction of the complaints. This is less about manufacturing error and more about customer service.

Just a few of the problems that we've seen:
No (or unusable) tracking numbers
Indeterminate delivery times
Damaged product with indeterminate replacement time
Total cancellation of orders without notice
Sketchy refund processes

This is deeper than general pissing and moaning, especially when you consider that we all dropped $200+ for this package of plastic and paper.

The new Jerry release will be a CD set like any other -- you'll be able to do everything you can do with any other CD. What can you think of?

Making a judgement, based on either A) your own experience, or B) what gets posted on this board, about "quality oversight" is ridiculous.

Even though I got a bad disc (which was relatively promptly replaced) I don't draw any broad conclusion from that.

I have many, many thousands of CDs -- and I have seen every imaginable error in my non-GD products: no disc at all inside the shrink wrap, 3-disc set with a disc duplicated and a misc missing, disc cracked, disc unplayable although apparently pristine, two! discs in a one-CD product, etc.

Things happen. People complain.

When you produce and ship 160,000 discs there will be some problems -- and people will piss and moan -- But I'll bet good money that most folks by far had no quality issues whatsoever with this set. Even though somebody probably got 3 copies of the same show's replica backstage pass and somebody probably got a book with a partially untrimmed page in it.

Does anyone know where these things were shipped from? Along with my other conspiracy theories, I have a hunch these were drop-shipped from a factory in China or similar.

This may explain why the quality oversight doesn't exist. The execs in the US got a sample that looked good, so they said "Ship it!" without considering if unit 100 or 1000 was as high of quality as the sample they saw. Now they are frantically trying to undo whatever manufacturing arrangement they had, resulting in the box set being permanently out of stock.

Hoorray, both Items arrived a few days ago here in germany, the seem to have been held back by customs, but no real clue to that, no explanation for the long delivery time...
Anyway, they arrived at last and I think Spring 90 is a very nice box (mine having the number 5084, by the way).
The only issue is to listen to all the music now, still torturing my better half with Europe 72...

Hoorray, both Items arrived a few days ago here in germany, the seem to have been held back by customs, but no real clue to that, no explanation for the long delivery time...
Anyway, they arrived at last and I think Spring 90 is a very nice box (mine having the number 5084, by the way).
The only issue is to listen to all the music now, still torturing my better half with Europe 72...

Yeah, it's surprising that people actually preferred the slotted RT packets (like me for example). I liked the size, color scheme, paper and (for the most part) artwork of Road Trips. The DaP are too large and the white color scheme on the spine is unimaginative. The card stock is no good either (even with the improvement it's too flimsy) I agree with you on the disc scratching issue though. I have transferred my whole collection to a large case I can carry around.

Wow. You PREFERRED the Road Trips packaging?! Gee, if I was luck enough to get the disc out properly it would usually already be scratched or dusty. I immediately placed them in separate jewel cases and a couple times actually got sent replacement discs for the condition they arrived in.
I was so relieved the Dave's series has jewel CD holder templates. And the Dick's Picks is perfecto. We're all unique I guess.

I also got a letter from parcel force on Sat morning telling me about the customs charges -I elected to shoot down to the local depot and pay and collect the same day. No real clues as to why it took so long to get thru the system other than the indicationt that a lot of different agencies seem to have been involved. Dates are not visible on any of the German labels but Parcelforce seem to have been handling it since at least the 14th. The good news is that there seems to be an element of monitoring in the process so that both Deutches Post and Parcelforce had barcodes on their labels and Parcelforce required a signature that was recorded into the system. My guess is that a) the parcels were des patched from source over a long period of time that had nothing to do with the date of the despatch note (see posting further down) and b) the delivery time is very much dependent on the speed that the various post agencies act and the customs factor. I suspect most will now turn up but there are lessons to be learned from this when sending out orders of this size and quantity.

I'm in the same position as you .... I have every release they've put out, along with the Download series etc., and so the last thing i want is a refund, but if they can't offer a replacement, then i'll have to try to obtain it elsewhere. What I would REALLY like is a statement from those running the show, explaining what has happened, what they are doing about it, and how they intend dealing with shipping in the future, to avoid a repeat of this shambles.

Mine has arrived at Birmingham Royal Mail and will be delivered the next day when I pay the customs charges so I expect some of the delay has been because of customs. For the rest of you I would hold off contacting customer services for at least another week and wait and see if it shows up.

New Brighton (U.K.) still awaits the Spring '90 box set....e-mailed Dr Rhino 2 days ago.....no response as yet.....the money for the product was taken from my account weeks ago, but rather worryingly, I never received a shipping notice or any correspondence since ordering.....stuff any thoughts of a refund.....I stumped up the cash in good faith when the release announcement came out and the least I want is what I committed to as I have done for EVERY GD release from day 1.

Dave's Picks Volume 3 arrived a couple of days ago so all is well there thankfully.

Hi, hopefully it will get here one day ..... on a positive note, my Dave's Picks arrived this morning.
I know what you're saying about the Import duties, but I'm just ranting !! I would hold off contacting Customer Services until you feel you are in a position to, or want to, get a refund, because they are absolutely no help whatsoever. They have no idea where our packages are, and are just hoping that they eventually turn up. I will give it probably a couple more weeks, then demand a refund, and see if Spin still have some. I will definitely be rethinking how I purchase Dead product in the future .... will probably go for the subscriptions, but take a different approach to any bigger releases.

Outpost, I'm in the same position. Still no sign of the product arriving in the North-East of England; supposed to have shipped 23 August, wrong tracking number, no way of tracing order etc, which , considering the mailing fee is incredible (contrast UK purchases from Amazon.com, both in terms of cost and speed of shipping).
Having read the posts on here I've held off contacting Cusomer Services, since I'd prefer to minimise the period of teeth gnashing and foaming at the mouth that it will undoubtedly produce. Having said that, I've just received an e-mail from "Store Support" asking if I'm enjoying the Spring 90 Box and whether I'm satisfied with the service provided.
I'll reply when I've calmed down.
On import duty and import VAT, it's a matter of luck; I've been caught for items costing as little as £20, yet managed to avoid charges on £100 orders.

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